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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26295778">The Space Guard</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Griselda_Gimpel/pseuds/Griselda_Gimpel'>Griselda_Gimpel</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Foundation - Isaac Asimov, The Old Guard (Movie 2020)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Age Difference, Crossover Pairings, Crossovers &amp; Fandom Fusions, F/F, M/M, War</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 08:47:16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,769</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26295778</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Griselda_Gimpel/pseuds/Griselda_Gimpel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Immortals live for a long time. Nile, Yusuf, and Nicolò have lived long enough to see the rise and fall of the First Galactic Empire, the foundation of the Foundation, and the dissolution of the Union of Worlds. Now they find themselves dreaming of a new immortal -- and she of them. </p>
<p>Set after the novella "Search by the Foundation". </p>
<p>Set waaay after the end of The Old Guard.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova, Nile Freeman/Bayta Darell</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>17</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>The Space Guard</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>                Bayta had been having dreams. They weren’t like the usual old nightmares that still sometimes haunted her, rife with the flash of energy weapons and the thud of the psychologist’s body hitting the floor. These new dreams were strange. They always featured the same three people. There were two men, who kissed and touched and just <em>looked</em> at each other with such frequency and passion that the relationship between the two of them was unmistakable. And there was a woman, dark of hair and skin, who looked only a few years older than Bayta’s granddaughter Arkady.</p>
<p>                She let out a sigh. He husband was in the ground now, but that was no call for her to be dreaming of beautiful young women who could have been her granddaughter! Another sigh. Now that Arkady had finished research on her book, she didn’t visit as often. Terminus was a long way from Trantor, after all. But Bayta couldn’t bear going back to the planet of her birth. Toran II said that word of what she had done had already spread there, and she didn’t think she could face that. People might make the mistake of calling her a hero. Still, it didn’t make the relative isolation of her self-imposed exile easy.</p>
<p>                “No wonder I’m having dreams,” Bayta muttered to herself. “Face it; I’m lonely.”</p>
<p>---</p>
<p>                At the safe house on Klaatu 5, Nile was holding council with Yusuf and Nicolò. It was just the three of them now, with Earth a distant memory. They lived, well, they lived where they were needed, as they always had. Now days, however, they had a whole galaxy to traverse. Klaatu 5 was the unoriginally named 5<sup>th</sup> moon of the planet Klaatu, in the Barada system, in the Nikto sector. It wasn’t part of the Foundation, and it hadn’t been part of the Union of Worlds. The planet was an uninhabitable gas giant, but three of the eight moons supported life, and all of them were ground under the heel of General Butcher. That wasn’t his birth name, but no one called him anything else.</p>
<p>                Nile, Yusuf, and Nicolò had been hired by the Freedom Coalition to assist in the liberation of the moon with the intent of establishing a republic style of government. Their employers didn’t know that they were effectively immortal (just good), and they weren’t being paid much. Their employers were a collection of farmers and artisans who just wanted to be able to live their lives without fear of General Butcher’s uniformed goons. The immortal trio had taken the job because they felt it was the right thing to do. These days, they hardly needed the money. They’d invested in a thousand different currencies across the galaxy over the millennia. Financially independent, they took the jobs that they felt would do the most amount of good.</p>
<p>                “We can’t leave these people,” Nicolò said.</p>
<p>                “But we can’t just let her, this new one, flounder,” Nile insisted. “We could be here for years.”</p>
<p>                “We still don’t know who she is,” Yusuf pointed out. “Or where.”</p>
<p>                They’d all been having dreams of the older woman with dark eyes and graying hair, who tended to her garden and rarely had visitors.</p>
<p>                “She’s safe at the moment,” Nicolò said.</p>
<p>                “But she’s dreaming of us, too,” Nile said. Then she snapped her fingers. “That’s it.” She rummaged around the supplies until she found a sheet of paper and a pen. With her tongue stuck in her cheek, she wrote:</p>

<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>                <em>Greetings, dream buddy. I am Nile. The two men are Yusuf and Nicolò. We would come to you to answer questions, but we are engaged on Klaatu 5. And yes, these dreams are real.</em></p>
</blockquote><p>                “There,” Nile said when she had finished. “Better than a long-range communicator. Now we can focus on the Butcher.”</p>
<p>                “Maybe he’ll be another Mule and just stop,” Nicolò said hopefully.</p>
<p>                “But hopefully less weird,” Yusuf added.</p>
<p>                Nile made a non-committal sound in response. Three times were they hired to oppose the Mule’s conquest, only for their contract to be terminated before they could get started in each case. It was only later that they started to get an answer from swirling rumors that the Mule was super-human. Then, out of the blue, his advance across the Galaxy stopped. And no one really knew why. On Klaatu 5, General Butcher maintained that the spirit of his grandmother had stopped the Mule and that was why the Mule had never conquered the Nikto Sector, which at the time had been under the heel of the Butcher’s grandfather. Before that, while in Foundation territory, they were informed quite confidently that a Foundation woman – a young bride – had stopped the Mule, but the details had been sketchy. While on Kalgan (for vacation for Yusuf and Nicolò’s wedding anniversary) they were told (by a haughty resort manager) that the rest of the galaxy simply didn’t deserve the First Citizen’s benevolent rule.</p>
<p>---</p>
<p>                Bayta still had her late husband’s old spaceship that he’d named after her. It still ran, and she could fly it. She kept it in the barn and stared at it now. She’d had to look up where Klaatu 5 was, but there were perks to living right by the Galactic Library. She had supplies enough for a long trip. There’d be dangers – the space around Klaatu 5 would be guarded by whatever warlord ran it – but it was nothing worse than she’d faced in her past.</p>
<p>                “But I was a younger woman, then,” Bayta said to herself.</p>
<p>                “And I’ll be chasing after, after a dream!” she responded to herself, as she had no one else to talk to these days. But a part of her – the part of her that had led to her to be staring at the spaceship in the barn – knew that the dream was more than a dream. She’d never had a dream before where she could clearly and coherently read writing.</p>
<p>                “And what else do I have to do these days?” she asked herself. That was what settled it. If this were a fool’s errand, well, she’d get to visit Klaatu 5. If she died, well, she’d lived a good life, hadn’t she? Few people could say they’d stopped a galactic conqueror in his tracks.</p>
<p>                (Few people could say they’d had their heart broken by a galactic conqueror.)</p>
<p>                After Bayta had left word for her son and granddaughter and arranged for someone to take care of her house while she was away, she packed up what she would need and left the atmosphere of Trantor. She’d have to get a good way away from Trantor before she could make the first jump, so while she waited, she pulled out a piece of paper and a pen. If she could get a message from her dream (or whatever it was), perhaps they could get her response.</p>

<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>                <em>Nile, Yusuf, &amp; Nicolò: I’ve never had a dream pen pal before. I’m coming to Klaatu 5 to see you. Can you prove to me that you are more than just a dream? I dearly hope that I can meet you. P.S. My name is Bayta. </em></p>
</blockquote><p>---</p>
<p>                “Oh, great, she’s coming to us,” Nile said. “She does realize that we’re in a war zone, right?”</p>
<p>                “She might not,” Yusuf pointed out.</p>
<p>                “You should put that into your next message,” Nicolò suggested. “You know, she’s kind of cute.”</p>
<p>                “Yeah,” Yusuf said grinning. “And she’s hardly older than Susan was.”</p>
<p>                “And I bet she wouldn’t dump you for not being robotic enough!” Nicolò finished triumphantly.</p>
<p>                Nile glowered at the two men, feeling her cheeks get hot. Ever since Andy, she’d come to appreciate the appeal of a mature woman. Most had actually been younger than Nile, and she had been parted from all of them in time. (<em>But this one will last</em>, a voice in her head whispered.)</p>
<p>                “Let’s just focus on the mission.”</p>
<p>                At the moment, they were en route to their next destination, traveling through dense jungle with their packs on their backs. Wars are often won more by logistics than strategy. General Butcher could blockade the planet all he wanted; the Freedom Coalition had made it clear that they were content to be a self-supporting, isolated planet if that was what freedom meant. To control the surface, General Butcher had to land troops, and to feed those troops, he needed supplies. As Nile had told the members of the Freedom Coalition, if you want to eat an elephant, you had to do it one bite at a time. (The members of the Freedom Coalition had stared at her blankly until she explained that an elephant was a large mythological animal. Then they’d went “Ah!” and nodded.) The plan was simply; cut off General Butcher’s supply lines to his troops, one sector of the planet at a time.</p>
<p>                The universe had changed a great deal since Nile had first discovered her immortality, and further still from the days of the Crusades. But some things remained the same. People still ate flour, flour was still made from grain, grain was still flammable, and a carefully directly blaster shot made just as much of an explosion as fired gun or a flaming arrow did. Five shots fired in quick succession sent five storage warehouses up in flames. By the time the troops of General Butcher were looking for suspects, the immortal trio had disappeared back into the jungle. They made camp by the bank of a river. After the tents had been set up and dinner prepared, Nile used a stick to write a message in the sandy dirt by the river.</p>

<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>                <em>Bayta, be careful. General Butcher controls the Barada system. We’re opposing his forces in the jungles outside of Bensonton. Since you are coming into danger – prick your finger with something. Then watch how quickly it heals. But know that there are worst things that death. Avoid capture at all cost.</em></p>
</blockquote><p>---</p>
<p>                “What in the name of Seldon?” Bayta whispered, staring at her finger. There was a small drop of red smear from where the cut had been, but the tiny injury had healed almost instantly. In the spirit of science, she tried it again and then a third time. Her hands were shaking so much afterward that she double and then triple checked the coordinates for the first jump. In the margin of the calculations, she scribbled in a note.</p>

<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>                <em>Nile – how far does this go?</em></p>
</blockquote><p>---</p>
<p>                Nile, much to her regret, wasn’t able to reply right away. General Butcher’s men caught wind of them, and it was a several days trek through muddy waters and mosquito infested jungle before their pursuers lost their trail and Nile could write again.</p>

<p></p><blockquote>
  <p>
    <em>                Bayta, sorry I couldn’t write sooner, but you probably saw in your dreams what we’ve been dealing with. To answer your question, you’re immortal now, the same as we are. It doesn’t last forever; we’ve never been able to determine how long it lasts or why it runs out when it does. For as long as it does, you’ll heal from any injury, even a seemingly mortal one. We expect to be circling Gortville next, although how you’ll find us in these jungles is beyond me. P.S. The dreams will stop once we’re together. </em>
  </p>
</blockquote><p>---</p>
<p>                The first jump was followed by a second, and then Bayta was entering General Butcher’s space. When she was in range of his ship’s sensors, she killed nearly every electronic device and let the ship hurl through space undirected. It was the first law; an object in motion will tend to stay in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. To the General’s ships, the <em>Bayta</em> was barely detectable. With her lights off in the vastness of space, she was nearly invisible to the naked eye. Radar would pick her up, but with hope, follow up sensors would mistake her for a hunk of space junk or an asteroid. An army of such readings would alarm the defense’s suspicions, but a single ship might be overlooked. She did not dare turn on a light as her ship headed toward Klaatu 5, and once it had reached the atmosphere, Bayta had to focus all her attention on getting down to nearly tree level to avoid detection.</p>
<p>---</p>
<p>                The team’s luck ran out outside of Gortville.</p>
<p>                Gortville was a trap.</p>
<p>                The first warehouse Nile, Yusuf, and Nicolò were supposed to hit was supposed to be filled with landmines. The plan was set a remote detonated bomb in the warehouse and blow all the landmines sky high before they could be planted in the ground where they’d harm innocent civilians. Instead, the warehouse was filled with soldiers bearing the insignia of General Butcher.</p>
<p>                Nile, Yusuf, and Nicolò had all been shot.</p>
<p>                They had died.</p>
<p>                They had resurrected.</p>
<p>                They had been shot again.</p>
<p>                They had resurrected to find themselves captured.</p>
<p>                The General himself had been summoned from his bunker in Bon Helen.</p>
<p>                “General,” his lieutenant saluted when he arrived.</p>
<p>                General Butcher glanced at the lieutenant and then turned his attention back to the captives, although it was to the lieutenant that he spoke. “You say they can’t die?”</p>
<p>                “No, sir.”</p>
<p>                “Show me.”</p>
<p>                So the trio died again.</p>
<p>                And resurrected to find themselves surrounded by dead bodies as an older woman stared down at them, her lips pursed. Nile clambered to her feet as Nicolò helped Yusuf stand. She took an assessment of their surroundings. Their restraints had been removed. The roof of the warehouse was gone, burned away. The body of General Butcher lay to her left. She could see his lieutenant just beyond him.</p>
<p>                “My ship’s outside. It’s equipped with blasters. I was able to eavesdrop on their communications. Once I heard a report about mercs who couldn’t die, I knew I’d found you.”</p>
<p>                Nile nodded. “Let’s get out of here.”</p>
<p>---</p>
<p>                When they reported the General’s death to the Freedom Coalition, they declared that it was their moment to seize power and establish a Republic. But that was for them to handle. The four immortals took the night off to rest. They’d found a tavern friendly to the Freedom Coalition in Bon Helen (now on FC control) and gotten a private table.</p>
<p>                “Well, welcome to the team,” Nile said after food had arrived.</p>
<p>                “My first victory feast?” Bayta asked wryly at the stew that had been served.</p>
<p>                “Better than what they served after Mulivac was defeated!” Nicolò declared. Yusuf laughed at that and then threw his arm around his husband, but Bayta only stared. Then she looked at Nile, who had given a small chuckle at the remark.</p>
<p>                “You’re old,” Bayta said. She could see it now, looking into Nile’s eyes. She might look like a young woman on the outside, but Bayta could see now that between them, Nile was the elder.</p>
<p>                “Yeah,” Nile said. “We are. Thanks for the save back there.”</p>
<p>                Bayta nodded in response.</p>
<p>                “That your first time killing?” Nile asked.</p>
<p>                Bayta shook her head. “I don’t…enjoy violence, but sometimes the alternative is worse.”</p>
<p>                “We feel the same,” Yusuf said, laying a comforting hand on hers.</p>
<p>                “Do you have any family?” Nile asked.</p>
<p>                “A son and a granddaughter,” Bayta said.</p>
<p>                “Can you break ties with them?” Nile asked. “It’s hard, but eventually they’ll realize that you aren’t getting any older.” She laid her hand on Bayta’s other hand, but Bayta sensed that the gesture coming from her was different than when Yusuf had done it. Yusuf had already removed his hand and was back to draping himself over his husband, but Nile let her hand linger. “You’ll always have us.” Nile promised.</p>
<p>                Bayta smiled. “It’ll be good not to be alone. I’m probably going to need to change my name and stay out of the spotlight for the next hundred years or so, though.”</p>
<p>                “What? Why?”</p>
<p>                Bayta’s eyes scanned the tavern until she spotted a young woman reading a book. “Excuse me, Miss?”</p>
<p>                “Yes, Ma’am?” the young woman answered.</p>
<p>                “What’re you reading?”</p>
<p>                The young woman held up the book excitedly. “It’s Arkady’s latest. I know my food is getting cold, but I just can’t put it down. I don’t even usually read non-fiction, but I love Arkady’s Kalgan series, and I’m so glad I checked it out.” Realizing that the back of the book was facing Bayta’s table, she turned it so that the quartet could read the title.</p>
<p>                <span class="u">Bayta Darell: Hero of the Galaxy: A Biography by Arkady Darell</span></p>
<p>                The woman returned to her literature, and Bayta found the eyes of the other three immortals upon her. “It’s a long story,” she said. “Probably easier if we just pick up a copy.”</p>
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